Add Local Folders to 'My Computer' view in Windows Explorer

Windows 7 Backup

"There is not enough disk space to create the volume shadow copy on the storage location."

Solution 1) Go to Services and restart Volume Shadow Copy Service and Virtual Disk Service.
--- or ---
Solution 2) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USN_Journal
Start>Run>diskmgmt.msc
If you have less than 50M space on the 'System Reserved' volume:
1. Right click on the System Reserved volume and give it a letter ( I've used the letter Z )
2. Start>Run>cmd
3. fsutil usn queryjournal Z:
4. fsutil usn deletejournal /N /D Z:
5. Repeat the steps 1 and 2 and REMOVE the letter from the System Reserved volume.
The backup should run successfully now.

Windows Explorer Copy, Paste and Delete Buttons

Russian blog: //www.outsidethebox.ms/10604/
English: //www.thewindowsclub.com/add-copy-paste-and-delete-buttons-to-windows-7-explorer-toolbar
HLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FolderTypes\{5c4f28b5-f869-4e84-8e60-f11db97c5cc7}
In the right side pane, right click > New > Key. Name the subkey as TaskItemsSelected and give it a value:
Windows.Copy; Windows.Paste; Windows.Delete;

Windows 7 Speech

//www.win7news.net/
Dim speaks, speech
speaks="Welcome, Kevin"
Set speech=CreateObject("sapi.spvoice")
speech.Speak speaks
Save the file with the .vbs extension and put it in the Startup folder

Windows 7 Account Locks

Lock out your Windows account when multiple login attempts fail
Set your Windows account to temporary lock if someone enters the wrong password several times in a row.
Open a command window as Administrator and using the command:
net accounts /lockoutthreshold:3 (to set the account to lock out after 3 tries).
Set the lockout duration with the command:
net accounts /lockoutduration:30 (for a 30 minute duration)
Set the reset time by entering:
net accounts /lockoutwindow:30 (for a 30 minute reset window)
//www.win7news.net/

Windows 7 Internet Connection Sharing

//www.win7news.net/
Want to share your Win7 computer's Internet connection with other computers wirelessly? As long
as your system's wireless network adapter supports the new Windows 7 "virtual wi-fi" feature, you
can do it. Intel, Broadcom, Realtek and some other NIC makers provide drivers that support this
feature; you'll need to be sure they're installed. Then do this:
Open an elevated command prompt by right clicking the cmd.exe link and selecting "Run as Administrator."
In the command window, type:
netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=MyNet key=MyPassword
(replace "MyNet" with the name you want to use for the wireless network
and replace "MyPassword" with your chosen password for accessing it)
Press Enter.
Now type: netsh wlan start hostednetwork
Press Enter.
Open Control Panel and go to Network and Sharing Center.
Click Change Adapter Settings.
Right click your Internet connection and select Properties.
Click the Sharing tab.
Check the box that says "Allow other network users to connect."
Choose your virtual wi-fi adapter and click OK.
Now wi-fi enabled computers within range should see your new wireless network and others can
connect to it if they know the password.

Disable Adobe Flash Animations for All but White-ListedSites in Internet Explorer 8

Windows Explorer - Disable Full Row Select

//www.winhelponline.com/blog/disable-full-row-select-explorer-windows-7/
This has other advantages, such as disabling 'auto arrange', but it didn't
disable full row select using Windows 7 64 bit until I added this DWORD value:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
FullRowSelect=dword:00000000
Disabling full-row select has also disabled my custom logon screen
(//www.withinwindows.com/2009/03/15/windows-7-to-officially-support-logon-ui-background-customization/),
resetting it to the default.
There is a Kevin Baconesque connection to http://sourceforge.net/projects/classicshell/

This can be done by selecting a checkbox in Ultimate Windows Tweaker
(//www.thewindowsclub.com/ultimate-windows-tweaker-v2-a-tweak-ui-for-windows-7-vista)

Upgrade or Clean Install Windows 7

http://bink.nu/news/clean-install-windows-7-with-upgrade-media-the-answer.aspx
...the goal here is to clean install Windows 7 on a virgin, unused PC. You can boot and run
Setup with the Upgrade media for Windows 7, but when you go to activate, it won't work.
After performing the clean install, ensure that there are no Windows Updates pending that would
require a system reboot. (You'll see an orange shield icon next to Shutdown in the Start Menu if this is
the case).
Then, open regedit.exe with Start Menu Search and navigate to:
HKLM/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Setup/OOBE/
Change MediaBootInstall from "1" to "0".
-------------------------------
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=1477
------------------------------
//www.winsupersite.com/win7/clean_install_upgrade_media.asp

Remove Libraries from Windows Explorer

originally posted here on August 22 2009.

You'll have to change permissions on this key first.
A sample .reg file:
--------------------------------------------------------------
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{031E4825-7B94-4dc3-B131-E946B44C8DD5}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:b090010d
----------------------------------------------------------------
After a reboot, this will hide your sissy Libraries
while still letting you use them from:
\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Libraries
and they are still available in File -> Open and Save boxes
The 'HomeGroup' icon will remove itself if:
You didn't set up a homegroup
You stop the two HomeGroup services

The 'Favorites' link can be removed by changing the 'Attributes' dword from a0900100 to a9400100:
('Favorites' will still be available in 'File Save' dialogs)
------------------------------------------------------------------
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{323CA680-C24D-4099-B94D-446DD2D7249E}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:a9400100
"PinToNameSpaceTree"=""
------------------------------------------------------------------
The 'Favorites' link can be renamed at:
------------------------------------------------------------------
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
\CLSID\{323CA680-C24D-4099-B94D-446DD2D7249E}]
@="Horatio"
------------------------------------------------------------------
Favorites will still work.
Related keys:
"\\HLM\\SOFTWARE\\Classes\\CLSID\\{323CA680-C24D-4099-B94D-446DD2D7249E}\\ShellFolder"
"\\HCR\\CLSID\\{323CA680-C24D-4099-B94D-446DD2D7249E}\\ShellFolder"
Different attributes give different right-click options.
Changing the attribute to 10 gives the rename menu.
Changing the attribute to 20 gives the delete menu, which has no effect:
Other attributes give the standard options, i.e. 'Cut', 'Copy', etc.
Favorites icon:
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{323CA680-C24D-4099-B94D-446DD2D7249E}\DefaultIcon]
Restore favorite links icon:
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{323CA680-C24D-4099-B94D-446DD2D7249E}\shell\restorefavoritelinks]
"Icon"="D:\\Home\\morejunk\\NewIcons\\folder-eye.ico"

Windows 7 with Windows Media Player and DVD Library

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/930526
How can I enable the DVD Library in Windows Media Center
on a Windows Vista-based computer?
"
To enable the DVD Library, follow these steps:
If Windows Media Center is running, close it.
Click Start.
In the Start Search box, paste or type regedit.
In the Programs list, click regedit.
If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type your
password, or click Continue.
Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Media Center\Settings\DvdSettings
In the details pane, right-click ShowGallery, and then click Modify.
Delete the contents that appear in the Value data box.
In the Value data box, type Gallery, and then click OK.
Close Registry Editor.
"
//www.slysoft.com/en/anydvd.html -- 30 day free trial!

Windows 7 logon UI background customization

<//www.withinwindows.com>
First, a check is made to determine if the customization functionality is enabled or not. More
precisely, a DWORD value named OEMBackground in the HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows
\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI\Background key is checked. Its data, of Boolean
type, defines whether or not this behavior is turned on, i.e. 1 for enabled, 0 for disabled.
Afterwards, if customization is enabled, the primary monitors screen height and width are
retrieved via calls to GetSystemMetrics. These values are used in the computation of the
screen width (w)/height (h) ratio. For example, my desktop resolution is 1920×1200. The
ratio, computed by the division of w/h, is 1.6:1.
The result of this computation is looked up in an internal table that drives what image to load
on disk. Although I dont have a large enough monitor to test, it appears resolutions higher
than 1920×1200 will force the loading and zooming of an image of closest compatibility (i.e.
same ratio, smaller image).
As this is an OEM feature images are derived from %windir%\system32\oobe\info
\backgrounds. Like the registry value, this folder may not exist by default. The following files
(sorted by width-to-height ratio) are supported in this folder:
backgroundDefault.jpg
background768×1280.jpg (0.6)
background900×1440.jpg (0.625)
background960×1280.jpg (0.75)
background1024×1280.jpg (0.8)
background1280×1024.jpg (1.25)
background1024×768.jpg (1.33-)
background1280×960.jpg (1.33-)
background1600×1200.jpg (1.33-)
background1440×900.jpg (1.6)
background1920×1200.jpg (1.6)
background1280×768.jpg (1.66-)
background1360×768.jpg (1.770833-)
NOTE: Images must be less than 256kb in size. Thanks for pushing me to investigate, Jay C.
The backgroundDefault.jpg image is loaded and stretched-to-fit when a resolution/ratio-
specific background cannot be found. The other resolution/ratio-specific files are self-
explanatory. If the background cannot be loaded (e.g. image physically too large, incorrect
ratio, etc.), the default SKU-based image is loaded from imagesres.dll. Youll see a Windows
Server-themed grayish background in there, too, suggesting this functionality is not specific
to client SKUs.
Text styles:
//www.withinwindows.com/2009/06/13/tweak-your-windows-7-logon-ui-button-set/#comments
<quote>
To change your button set, simply jump to
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI
and add a DWORD value named ButtonSet. The supported integer values range
from 0 to 2, with each value defined below.
0 - Lighter text shadows, darker (more opaque) buttons (Windows default)
1 - Darker text shadows, lighter (more translucent) buttons (for lighter backgrounds)
2 - No text shadows, opaque buttons (for darker backgrounds)
</quote>
Add video from your networked storage into Movie Maker
//www.withinwindows.com/2009/08/18/add-video-from-your-networked-storage-into-movie-maker/
"The network share housing your media must allow unfettered Guest access."
"...HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Live\Movie Maker and add
a DWORD value named AllowNetworkFiles. Afterwards, simply double-click it and
set its data to either 0 (disabled) or 1 (enabled)."
<///www.withinwindows.com>//www.withinwindows.com

Temporary Internet Files in Windows 7 with IE8

I keep Temporary Internet Files on a RAM disk, so to view the
folder contents, I have to run a batch file containing:
attrib /D /S -S -H z:\*
It will only work for me after I've opened the browser for the first time, because
the folders aren't created until then. If you're a normal person who keeps TIF files
where Microsoft told you to, you might be able to run it at startup.
TIF cookies aren't the only place They use to watch you. Another
method is 'Flash cookies'; those settings, for your personal
computer, can only be changed by visiting the adobe website:
//www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager03.html
Thanks, adobe!
Flash UserData:
C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Roaming\Macromedia\Flash Player
This one is interesting; web sites you know, and some you don't, have
their own folders here. A gold mine for snoops.
UserData:
C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\UserData
Introduction to DOM Storage:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc197062(VS.85).aspx
The 'UserData persistence' setting for IE8 can be different
for every zone:
Tools -> Internet Options -> Security -> * -> Custom Level
Internet Explorer History Entries and Windows Search Integration:
//www.winhelponline.com/blog/ie-history-windows-search-integration/
http://googlesharing.net/
http://panopticlick.eff.org/

Update: September 2010
http://samy.pl/evercookie/
"...evercookie is a javascript API available that produces extremely persistent cookies in a
browser. Its goal is to identify a client even after they've removed standard cookies, Flash
cookies (Local Shared Objects or LSOs), and others.
evercookie accomplishes this by storing the cookie data in several types of storage mechanisms
that are available on the local browser. Additionally, if evercookie has found the user has removed
any of the types of cookies in question, it recreates them using each mechanism available.
..."
BleachBit 0.8.7 is a cleaner which claims to deletes evercookies. It supports Internet Explorer,
Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari and also works and Windows & Linux platforms.
http://bleachbit.sourceforge.net/news/bleachbit-087

Clear Page File At Shutdown

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management
(Hexadecimal or Decimal). This setting allows inactive
Pages in the Paging File to be cleared (overwritten with zeros) during shutdown.
When set to 0 (Default) inactive Pages are not written with zeros having no effect on
shutdown time and making Page File data readable.
A value of 1 enables inactive Pages to be cleared during shutdown with longer shutdown
times.

Internet Explorer 8 Window Title

The Internet Explorer Window Title can be found at
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\Window Title]
New -> String Value
...note the space between 'Window' and 'Title'

Remove the search box in IE8

Remove the search box in IE8 (and IE7)
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Infodelivery\Restrictions]
"NoSearchBox"=dword:00000001
Windows XP Home doesn't have that key by default; go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft
right-click it and select New -> Key, name it Internet Explorer (with
a space), right-click that and New -> etc.